Jewels From JohnSample

Everything We Have - We Received 

John the Baptist is a great example of a man, who knew exactly who he was and what his life’s purpose was.  He spelled this out very clearly throughout his life.  He was just a ‘voice’ to introduce Jesus, the one who was ‘preparing the way’ for Jesus to come and fulfil His mission on earth. After he baptized Jesus, and many of his own disciples decided to leave him to follow Jesus, some of them became quite uncomfortable. They came to him with the complaint that ‘everyone was going to Jesus’ (John.3:26) and deserting their ‘camp.’ His response in John 3:27 is stunning. He answered them 'that a man can receive nothing unless given to him from heaven'. That is why he could say so sincerely about Jesus, “He must increase, but I must decrease." John 3:30 (NKJV)

If we take a moment to think about it, everything we have in our lives is God’s gift to us—our life, our senses, our health, our knowledge, our skills, our birth place, our families—everything. If the Lord did not decide to give it to us, we would not have it, no matter how hard we tried. This kind of perspective on life does the following things:  it gives no room for any sort of boasting, teaches us to not get overly possessive of anything or anyone, reminds us to be mindful of others who are less fortunate, and most importantly, reminds us to acknowledge God in every single area of our lives.

James says it this way, “Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” James 1:17 (NKJV)